265 thoughts on “If Facebook says you have malware, do not download their program—here’s a way around it

  1. I’m not entirely sure if it’s available for Linux, but on Firefox for Windows it was called Change Headers, and for Chrome for Windows it’s called Modify Headers for Google Chrome. The last two postscripts have links to the comments where some users explained how they worked. Best of all, it isn’t made by Facebook!

  2. I just had the same thing happen. I simply setup a VM with a clean copy of Win10 and let it scan that. Scan came back clean and I deleted the VM. Problem solved.

  3. Good idea, csorrows. I think setting up a VM may be beyond the expertise of a lot of users, but it is a fine solution.

  4. Try to login from Linux based device, their sh*t will not run on it and therefore they remove their “suspicion” from your account. Worked for me.

  5. To follow up on this, maybe changing browser’s agent to fool FB to think you are logging in from Linux device.

  6. Funnily enough I encountered exactly the same problem today when I tried to log into Facebook. First time I had ever seen it. Tried the obvious of different browser, clean cache, history, different machine, etc. That made no difference. Then I tried the same method employed by csorrows – normality was restored.

    If this becomes a common feature of Facebook “security” – then Facebook will find itself permanently running in a very lonely browser in a very boring virtual machine.

  7. It has happened to me twice. Once in 2016 immediately after I shared a Google photos video which was mine. I was blocked for three days and never received any reply to the countless complaints I sent. The next was last month (Nov 2017) immediately after I shared my Ebates referral link. I logged in through Firefox on the same computer and it allowed me to login in with limited access. I cleared my cookies on Chrome and the same thing happened, suddenly five minutes later it was like nothing happened. Either way, both times happened the moment I shared a link. I’m a systems engineer and it was a fresh OS install that was hardened.

  8. Thank you, Dusty, it’s useful to get the viewpoint of a professional. I’ve had trouble sharing links on Facebook for years, long before this malware scanner, so my mind keeps coming back to some databasing fault on their end. Do you think this theory is plausible?

  9. Well said, Normski. I ceased updating my Facebook wall in 2017. It really has less and less utility for me, and these fake malware accusations don’t help its cause.

  10. I am having this problem today. I have a MacBook Pro and FB’s software won’t run on it. Its’ only for Windows. What a bunch of crap. I use FB for my business an now I am locked out except on my phone. I guess I will wait it out and see what happens. I tired Safari and Chrome and neither will work.

  11. Roxane, till Facebook gets its act together, can you try accessing m.facebook.com (the mobile version) on your Macbook? It’s not a proper solution but might prove to be a workaround.

  12. I’ve just downloaded their anti-malware ESET_T10157058615938835T_.exe and let it run. Immediately closed browser, opened Task manager and ended process Eset Facebook… Restarted comp. and all ok.

  13. Thank you for sharing your experience, Fantast. How many hours did it take to run? A lot of us ran it and it never completed over many hours. Also, were you able to get rid of it from the hidden directory on your computer? We still can’t ignore the fact your computer was probably never infected to begin with.

  14. In 2016, Macs weren’t affected, as I was able to get on by going to a Mac OS X machine. I’d still recommend the same course of action: to change the headers and find a device they haven’t blocked (e.g. an Iphone). The other option is to wait three days—for most people it comes back.

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